Javi Gracia felt Malaga were “unlucky” to have left second-tier Mirandes with a 2-1 defeat in the Copa del Rey last 32 on Thursday.

Roque Santa Cruz’s first goal of the season was not enough to avoid the Andalucians from a fourth defeat in five games, but the Coach maintained his defence of the team, putting their latest failure down to yet more misfortune.

“We can still turn the tie around,” he said after the game.

“We’ve found it difficult to score again, but [Mirandes] are very strong and did well with the second balls.

“We were warned [before the game] that Mirandes were a very aggressive team and we weren’t lucky, despite dominating at times.”

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